Vacuum cigarette stub disposer



kann .Y

Feb. 24, 1959 2,874,702

` H. N. wLKER AHALv VACUUM CIGARETTE sTUB DrsPosER Filed Fe'bf 1s, 1956 z W l: wares w ,.2 HAROLDN. A

\\\ /f 85 B@mman s.PARKHURsT United States Patent VACUUM CIGARETTE STUB DISPOSER Harold N. Walker, New Delhi, India, and Alfred S. Parkhurst, Portland, Oreg.

Application February 13, 1956, serial No. 565,233

3 claims. (ci. 131-235) This invention relates to a cigarette extinguisher and particularly to a cigarette extinguisher of the vacuum type which is adapted to be installed in an automobile, train, bar, or other place where smoking is enjoyed.

Prior cigarette extinguishers of the vacuum type have not come into wide Icommercial use for various reasons, such as being too complicated and expensive to be marketable, and also in many instances because they simply had not been operative.

It is a main object of the present invention to provide a cigarette extinguisher which is simpler and less expensive than prior extinguishers and which is fully operative for carrying out the purposes for which it is designed.

A particular defect of prior extinguishers is that various types of screens and lters have been incorporated in the device to prevent the parts of a cigarette stub, which usually disintegrates at least in part upon entering a vacuum container, from passing into aV line supplying vacuum to the device. For convenience hereinafter, the parts `of a disintegrated cigarette stub, as well as the stub itself, will be referred to as burning cigarette parts or merely cigarette parts.

It has also been noted that there is a tendency for the various screens or filters heretofore provided to become clogged by cigarette parts entering the device, and special complicated arrangements have been provided in an effort to prevent such clogging. In some instances, a screen has been made of considerable size and has been used to divide a vacuum container into separate sections, thereby lessening the capacity of the device.

A more particular object of the present invention is to provide a cigarette extinguisher of the vacuum type which is so designed that the screen or filter which' conventionally is provided may be Veliminated without objectionable passage of cigarette parts through the vacuum line to the vacuum source.

It is also an object of the invention to provide a cigarette extinguisher which is so constructed thata simple andI inexpensive screen or lilter may be provided and is not subject to becoming clogged by cigarette parts entering the device.

Another objectv of the present invention is to provide a cigarette extinguisher constructed to cause a cigarette stub to ,disintegrate more readily than prior extinguishers have been capable of doing.

Another object of thev present invention is to provide acigarette extinguishing device which is more readily operated than prior devices and more readily mounted in place. v Y

. 'Ihe cigarette extinguisher of the present invention is characterized by including a vacuum container having a cap defining a chamber, the cap having a tangential inlet into the chamber so that a swirling motion is imparted to cigarette vparts entering the container so as to maintain them in spaced relation to a vacuum connection to the cap. v

- Various other objects ofthe present invention will be 2,874,702 Patented Feb. 24, 1959 ICC explained in connection with the accompanying drawi l vention mounted on an automobile, which is shown only a check valve 4S covers the hole.

fragmentarily;

Fig. 2 is a plan view with certain parts in horizontal section taken along line 2-2 of Fig. l;

Fig. 3 is a sectional View taken along line 3 3 of Fig. 1 showing more fully the construction of the cigarette receiver;

Fig. 4 is a vertical sectional view taken generally along line 4-4 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a View in elevation, with parts broken away, of a modified form of receiver unit;

Fig. 6 is an elevational View, with parts broken away, of a still further modified form of receiver unit, and

Fig. 7 is a plan view of the receiver unit disclosed in Fig. 6.

Referring to Figs. 1 through 4, the cigarette extinguisher dis-closed includes, in general, a container unit 11 for receiving cigarette stubs to be extinguished from a receiver 13 through a line in the form of a tube 15. A source of vacuum, not shown, is connected by a line 17 to the container to create a vacuum in the container. A valve 19 on receiver 13 maintains a vacuum in the container unit and in the line 15. When the valve is open a cigarette placed in the receiver will be forced by atmospheric pressure to shoot through the line 15 and into the container, whereupon the valve is closed and because of the lack of oxygen the cigarette is extinguished. For convenience in description, hereinafter a vacuum in the container unit may be considered as drawing or sucking a cigarette through the line 15 from the receiver 13.

More particularly, the container unit 11 comprises a container in the form of a jar 21 having a dome-shaped cap 23 which is threaded or otherwise suitably mounted on the upper end thereof. The jar 21 is preferably made of glass, or a similar transparent material, so that the user can determine when the jar is lilled and needs to be emptied.

The container unit is mounted on the firewall 24 of an automobile by means of a strip 25 secured at its lower end to a boss 27, shown in Fig. 2, on the cap andlat its the inlet having one end of line 1S connected thereto by a suitable hose clamp 39. The line 15 extends through' a hole in the lire wall 24 and has its opposite end connected by hose clamp 41 to the lower and outlet end of the receiver 13. The mounting strip 25 is preferably formed of malleable material so that accurate location of the holes receiving screws 31 relative to the hole in tire wall 24 receiving line 15 is not required. Y

FixedV within the cap 23 is a cone shaped deector 43 having a central hole or opening for the passage of air therethrough. A screen 44 is iixed within the hole, and A lilter 46 maybe provided in the cap. The receiver 13 is generally of tubular form, being provided at its upper or inlet end with a flared mouth or hopper 49 for receiving cigarette stubs to be extinguished. The receiver is mounted on .the dashboard or instrument panel 55 of the automobile by means of a bracket 57 which is connected by. screws S9 to the lower forwardly projecting iiange portion of the dashboard, in the particular installation shown, the bracket having an ear 61 received between a'pair of ears 63` on thel receiver and connected to such ears by a bolt 65. The line is tiexible, being made of rubber, plastic or a similar material, and 'because of the particular mounting disclosed the bolt 65 may be loosened and the receiver 13 pivoted to adjust it to the position most de-l sirable to the user.

The valve 19 includes a piston-shaped valve element 66 guidingly and slidably received within a transverse bore formed in the receiver and having a necked down portion or recess 67 receiving an end of a valve lever 68. The lever is pivoted at 69 on the receiver and a spring 70 urges the lever in a direction to. close the valve. The lever extends generally parallel to the length of the receiver. The axis of movement of the lever 68 is such that its valve-engaging end moves in a path substantially parallel to that of the valve element 66. The handle end of the lever is disposed opposite the mouth ofl the receiver, and the lever 68, when in valve-closing position, is located close to the hopper or mouth 49. The mouth or hopper 49 limits movement of the lever to valve-opening position. In this position, the valve element 66, although it has moved outwardly relative to the transverse bore, is still in engagement therewith. The receiverV is relatively narrow and because of this and the previously described construction, the valve may readily be operated by squeezing the handle end of the lever against the receiver. This can readily be done by employing the thumb and index finger of one hand. A vent hole 71 is formed in the receiver so that the valve may readily be moved.

In operation, a burning cigarette stub is placed in the receiver 13 so that it projects at least partially into the passage provided by the receiver. The lower wall of the hopper forms substantially a straight continuation of the lower portion of the passage provided by the receiver in order to facilitate partial insertion of the cigarette into the passage. In any event, the entire area of the hopper 49 clears the axial projection of the receiver passage so that bending of the cigarette stub is avoided. The valve 19 is spaced suticiently from the hopper 49, as illustrated in Fig. 3, to make possible insertion of the cigarette into the passage.

The valve element 66, which normally blocks communication between the receiver passage and the line 15, is moved to provide unimpeded communication, the cross-sectional area of the passage at the valve being undiminished when the valve is opened. This is ensured because the valve element 66 is entirely withdrawn. Furthermore, since the passage conforms to the cross-section of the usual cigarette, the cigarette is acted upon electively by the vacuum. For these reasons, the cigarette is quickly sucked through the line 15 and into the cap 23 through the inlet 37. The valve is then closed quickly so that the stub is subjected to subatmospheric pressure within the container 21.

We have noted that a stub partially or wholly disintegrates as it enters the cap, and We believe this is caused at least in part by the expansion in the stub of the air contained therein which is at substantially atmospheric pressure when the stub enters the cap. This air under atmospheric pressure therefore tends to expand to equalize the pressure within the stub and without the stub, and this is believed to cause a partial or whole disintegration of the stub. Also, the abrasion of the stub against the walls of the tube 15 and the cap 23 probably contributes to the breaking up of a stub.

The tangential location of the inlet causes the cigarette parts to swirl around in the cap in spaced relation to the outlet 33 and the screen 44. Thus, air drawn through the outlet 33 and passing through the screen is removed from the center of the cap and container and hence is relatively free of debris. The cigarette parts which might tend to move or be thrown toward the center of the cap will strike the deflector 43 and be deected toward the bottom of the container 21. The withdrawal of ail from the container through the line 17 removes the source of oxygen for the burning cigarette part, and thus because of the lack of oxygen, the burning parts are quickly extinguished. At least it has been noted that they do not smoulder for any appreciable length of time.

Because of the tangential inlet and the deector, it is possible to eliminate the screen 44 without objectionable passage of cigarette parts into the vacuum line. However, purchasers may demandV an extinguisher having a screen, and if so one can readily be provided without much extra expense since the screen 44 is small and can readily be mounted in the central hole in the deiiector. The screen can be made small without danger of clogging, primarily because of the special construction of the extinguisher which maintains cigarette parts entering the cap in spaced relation from the center of the cap so that relatively clean air is drawn through the screen.

The check valve 45 functions to prevent loss or at least delay loss of vacuum in the container 21 when the vacuum in the line 17 drops, such as when the automobile is operating under full throttle or when the ignition is turned off. Thus the extinguisher can be operated once or twice after the vacuum in line 17 drops to zero, that is, after the pressure in the line 17 rises to atmospheric.

Referring again to Fig. 4, a projection 72 in the form of a claw may be provided at the inner end of inlet 37 in position to be struck by stubs entering the cap to aid in disintegrating the stub.

Although the extinguisher device disclosed in Figs. l through 4 is being shown as mounted on an automobile, it is evident that it could be mounted in other places such as in trains, aircraft, bars, or other places where smoking is permitted.

Fig. 5 shows a modified form of receiver unit which is mounted by means of a bracket 73 on a dashboard 74. The receiver` includes a tubular piece 75 which has a disc-shaped head 77 secured thereto, the head having a passage 79 diametrically extending therethrough and communicating with the interior of piece 75. The receiver includes a hopper 81 which when not in operation is disposed in the upwardly inclined position shown in Fig. 5, the hopper having an arcuate guide 83 fixed to the lower end thereof aand embracing the head 77. The guide 83 includes a strip 85 disposed in sealing engagement with the passage 79 when the hopper 81 is disposed in its inoperative position.

A screw 87 is threaded through the lower end of the guide 83 and ts into an arcuate slot 89 formed in the periphery of the head 77 and retains the guide on the head. With the parts disposed in the position shown in Fig. 5, the lower end of the guide 83 is spaced from the sleeve 75.

In operation, a burning cigarette stub C is deposited in the hopper 81 and the hopper then swung clockwise, to bring it into alignment with the passage 79. A source of vacuum is connected to the receiver by a line 91, and thus the cigarette will be sucked from the receiver into a vacuum container, not shown, which is connected to the other end of line 91. The lack of oxygen in the vacuum container causes the stub to be extinguished.

Figs. 6 and 7 show another modified form of receiver unit which may be connected to a dashboard 101 by a bracket 103. Fixedly mounted on the bracket s a stationary base plate 105 which is equipped with a nipple 107 extending therethrough. A line 109 is secured' at one end by a hose clamp 111 to the lower end of nipple 107 and is connected at its other end to a vacuum container, not shown. A pivot pin 113 connects a swinging valve plate 115 to the base plate 105, the valve plate having mounted thereon a receiver in the form of a hopper 117, the lower end of which is tubular and snugly fits into and extends through the valve plate 115.

With the parts shown in the position of Figs. 6 and 7, the upper end of the nipple 107 is closed by the valve plate 11S. However, if the valve plate and the receiver 117 are swung in a counterclockwise direction, Fig. 7, the lower end of the receiver may be brought into alignment with the nipple 107 so that a cigarette stub C deposited into the receiver can be sucked into the line and therefrom into the vacuum container. The lack of oxygen in the vacuum container causes the burning cigarette partsin the container to be extinguished. It will be apparent that suitable springs, not shown, may be employed in the devices of Figs. 5, 6 and 7 to return the receivers to their line closing positions.

Having described the invention in what is considered to be the preferred embodiment thereof, it is desired that it be understood that the invention is not to be limited other than by the provisions of the following claims.

We claim:

t 1. In a device for a vacuum type cigarette extinguisher in which a source of vacuum is available for drawing cigarette parts into a container: a receiver member having a tubular part at one end forming an outlet and to which a llexible conduit may be attached for connection of the said one end to said container; said receiver member having provisions for adjustable attachment to an instrument panel or the like; said receiver member having a hopper at its other end having n a lower wall; the tubular part providing a passage opening in the bottom of said hopper; said lower wall of said hopper forming substantially a straight continuation of a corresponding portion of the passage for guiding a cigarette part for partial insertion into said passage; said passage having a substantial portion corresponding in cross-section to that of a conventional cigarette; said tubular part having means forming a transverse opening located at a distance from said hopper and dividing said passage into two parts in communication respectively with the ends of the receiver member; a slidable valve member movable in said transverse opening to extend completely across Said passage to interrupt communication between the parts of said passage; a guide formed on the tubular part and confining said valve member for movement in opposite directions inwardly and outwardly of the guide corresponding to closing and opening positions of the valve member; the valve member completely clearing the passage when the valve member is in opening position; said valve member having a recess accessible exteriorly of the tubular part when said valve member is in closing position; a lever pivotally mounted on the receiver for rotation about an axis transverse to the passage and substantially normal to the said lower wall of said hopper so that one end of said lever is movable in a path substantially parallel to the path of movement of said valve member;

said one lever end projecting within said valve memberA recess for movement of said valve member by said 1ever; the other end of said lever being movable toward and away from said hopper whereby said hopper limits angular movement of the lever in a direction cor- 6 responding to outward movement of the valve member in the guide; the hopper being so positioned as to prevent movement of the valve member beyond the guide; resilient means engaging the lever so that its said other end is biased away from said hopper and so that said valve member is normally in closing position; and means limiting movement of said other lever end away from said hopper to a range such that the hopper and the said other lever end may be clutched between the thumb and the fingers for actuation of the lever.

2. A vacuum type cigarette extinguisher comprising a vacuum container, means for connecting a source of vacuum to ,said container, a hopper unit for receiving cigarette parts to be extinguished, and means placing said hopper unit in communication with said container, said hopper unit including a straight tubular unobstructed passageway having a substantial axial portion corresponding in cross-section substantially to that of a conventional cigarette, said passageway terminating at the end remote from said communication means in an enlarged funnel-shaped inlet to guide the insertion of cigarette parts axially into said tubular passageway, the entire area of the funnel-shaped inlet extending in exterior encompassing relationship to the axial projection of the passageway through said funnel-shaped inletto permit and to guide insertion of cigarette parts into said passageway without bending the cigarette parts, and a valve means spaced from said inlet and located adjacent the other end of and normally closing said passageway, said valve means including means for blocking communication between said passageway and communication means, and manually operable means for eliminating said blocking means and providing an unimpeded communication channel between said passageway and communication means of at least as large a cross-section as the adjacent portion of said passageway, the distance between said valve means and said inlet being suicient to enable a substantial portion of an unconsumed cigarette part to be closely enclosed by the walls of said passageway so that when said valve means is open the differential pressure on said cigarette part is not substantially lessened because of the ow of air past said cigarette part into said communication means.

3. The device as set forth in claim 2 wherein the funnel-shaped inlet is provided with a lower wall portion forming substantially a straight-line continuation of the corresponding lower wall portion of said passageway.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 750,143 Wilson et al. Jan. 19, 1904 990,179 Wilson et al. Apr. 18, 1911 1,776,563 Macready Sept. 23, 1930 1,782,540 Machtolf Nov. 25, 1930 1,992,450 Sporman Feb. 26, 1935 2,461,815 Gill Feb. 15, 1949 2,633,854 Boland et al. Apr. 7, 1953 2,636,308 Demmer Apr. 28, 1953 2,761,239 Stamps Sept. 4, 1956 2,762,376 Donnelly Sept. l1, 1956 

